The possible takeover of a struggling private utility prompted the governing boards from two Southwest Riverside County water districts to hold their first-ever joint meeting on Monday, Sept. 23.

Trustees of the Elsinore Valley and Eastern municipal water districts are contemplating how to provide service to a tiny neighborhood straddling the border between Wildomar and Menifee and sandwiched between the jurisdictions of the two public agencies. Both were founded in 1950.

While sensitive negotiations required Mondayâs meeting to be held mostly behind closed doors, it represented a milestone in the districtsâ unified effort to take over the County Water Company of Riversideâs service to approximately 140 households.

âBoth boards are very committed to doing the right thing,â said Eastern spokesman Kevin Pearson. âThis is kind of an unprecedented thing in terms of a takeover like this. Weâre working hand-in-hand with Elsinore. This canât get done without both agencies working in concert.â

For years, residents in the rustic enclave north of Bundy Canyon Road have put up with undrinkable tap water and sometimes no running water at all from County Water Company. Owned by an Orange County couple, the firm is one of the few remaining privately held water utilities in the state.

Elsinore Valley and Eastern have arrived at a conceptual agreement to split the service area down the boundary between the cities and cooperate in extending water lines to the community.

Moving forward with the project, however, requires a formal agreement among the districts, the private company and the Riverside County Board of Supervisors. The countyâs environmental health department is responsible for ensuring residents countywide get safe drinking water and it intervened with the County Water Company on behalf of residents.

Complicating the negotiations -- from the perspective of the water districts -- is the potential legal liability each could incur when they assume responsibility for County Water Company customers.

The districts are seeking state legislation to limit their risks during construction, exposure related to the current owners and their operations, and future claims stemming from what remains of the existing system, Easternâs director of public and governmental affairs, Jolene Walsh, told the board members.

She said state Senators Bill Emmerson, R-Redlands, and Richard Roth, D-Riverside, are expected to introduce the legislation as an urgency measure in January to expedite passage.

Until that occurs, officials from both districts said a final agreement between the four entities is unlikely.

âI think we want to wait for the legislation,â Elsinore Valley board President Phil Williams said. âWe need to protect the ratepayers in our district. We donât want to put our ratepayers at risk.â

While the County Water Companyâs attorney has said the owners have agreed to the proposed takeover, Eastern President Phil Paule said they need to come to the negotiating table.

âWe want to make sure the County Water Company is participating in this process,â he said.

Ultimately, the districtsâ annexation of the neighborhood served by the water company will require approval by the Riverside Local Agency Formation Commission, which oversees municipal government boundary adjustments.

If the districtsâ time line for action stays on track, they would install a temporary âlifelineâ system to the community in mid-January, while planning and design of a permanent system would begin in March. Construction would start in May.

Join the conversation

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to allow Freedom Communications, Inc. the right to republish your name and comment in additional Freedom publications without any notification or payment.